Glen Arbor Artisans gallery opened on July 5 to feature Kristin Hurlin’s and Paul May’s art. The building, across M-22 from the Lakeshore Inn and kitty-corner from the tennis courts, is sleek, industrial and striking. Like the new M-22 store on the east end of town, the Artisans gallery features a board and batten exterior that leads the eye on a vertical path, not a horizontal one. “It makes you feel taller,” said Hurlin.
When the Glen Arbor Athletic Club closed this past May, it left the Old School building on M-22, arguably among Glen Arbor’s most recognizable landmarks, sitting vacant. But thanks to a group of local artists, the schoolhouse has again found a purpose.
The lovely pitcher plant (Sarracemia purpurea) lives in the extreme acid conditions found in our local peat bogs and fens. A nearly spherical flower with showy pinkish-purple sepals is borne at the end of a scape (leafless stem) that can reach two feet. Unusual leaves, springing from the base of the plant, form tubular “pitchers” that fill with rainwater. The pitcher leaves have a flared lip that serves as a landing strip for insects. Inside the rim, downward pointing fine hairs and a numbing secretion cause the bugs to fall into the water, where they are digested by a whole ecosystem of organisms living in the “pool”. When an older leaf is sliced open, a collection of insect parts can be seen at the narrow base of the leaf. The pitcher plant is a carnivore like the Venus flytrap, supplementing its diet with insects to compensate for the nutrient poor environment of a bog.
The cold winter weather of 2013 that lingered well into May has delayed the emergence of our beloved trillium, prolonging their bloom time into June. The large flowered trillium (trillium grandiflorum) has a single, stout stem arising from a deeply buried bulb, three leaves and three big white petals. A Michigan Protected Flower, trillium are fragile and should not be picked, as this kills the entire plant. Besides, they lack fragrance and wilt quickly. In an emergency situation people can eat the leaves and bulb. White-tailed deer also eat trillium, and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources predicts that between habitat destruction by humans and grazing by deer, trillium could disappear in the next 30 years. So enjoy the trillium today, and do what you can to ensure their survival for your great grandchildren.
This painting is an imaginary place, based on an adventure at Good Harbor Bay with my friend Marilyn. Years ago, we were having a hot, dry summer similar to our present conditions. We hiked for miles down the beach under sunny skies, while a dark cloud appeared in the northeast above the Whaleback. The storm moved in so rapidly we were engulfed long before we expected, far from our cars. Lightning and thunder crashed down all around as we ran for the relative shelter of the fore dune pine copes. We could just feel the great joy of all the plants as the heavy down pour washed off the dust and filtered down the root zone. Marilyn and I however had to run two miles through the violent storm, covering each lightning strike, and reaching our car, soaking wet. We laughed all the way home.
Cedar and birch trees lean out toward the light at the edge of the forest as the beach path leads you to Lake Michigan. Along the way, you pass wood lilies and false solomon seal with bright, striped berries. Moisture from the lake bathes the ferns and mosses, and releases the sweet earthy scent of crushed cedar needles covering the sandy path. Turquoise water beckons as you leave the cool forest and walk out into the blazing sun. Swim out into the cool water, float on your back and scan the blue sky for eagles and terns. Now this is living!
On a hot, sunny midsummer’s day, when Lake Michigan is still cold, a thick fog bank develops just off shore as the day heats up. Then an afternoon wind usually blows the cold mist inland, dropping the temperature and watering the near shore plants. Blooming in a riot of color in sheltered areas, typical dune flowers near Pyramid Point shown here are coreopsis, wood lily, ragwort, hairy puccoon, smooth rose interspersed with juniper and buffalo berry bushes. Wild strawberries are ripe in late June and grow right out of the sand with the other flowers. For a rare Midsummer Day treat — roll a wild strawberry up in a rose petal, and pop into your mouth!
Summer visitors miss the early flowers that bloom as the trees unfurl their leaves, so here is an illustration to give you a taste of that beauty. Leelanau County in May is a glorious experience. Wildflowers spring up on the hardwood forest floor, spreading a carpet of green and white over dead leaves of winter.
Glen Arbor artist Kristin Hurlin’s illustrations appear in the new children’s book Michigan Fruit: An Artful Coloring & Activity Book (Artful Educators, 2011). Hurlin co-authored the book with Susan Briggs. Michigan Fruit is filled with history, lore, recipes and beautiful pictures to color, including thematic farmscapes of strawberries, cherries, blueberries, apricots, peaches, plums, pears, apples, grapes, favorite fruit recipes, and a map and list of Michigan fruit festivals.
